ZP-V Physical Scientist (GS-15 equivalent), Washington, DC
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a Federal agency within the Department of Commerce, is advertising for a Division Director within its Climate Program Office. The Division Director for the Climate Assessment and Services Division (CASD) provides leadership and support for research, assessments and climate services development activities designed to bring sound, interdisciplinary science to bear on climate-sensitive resource management and adaptation challenges in key sectors and regions. The overarching goals of the division are the following:
- Identification of, and support for innovative and broadly applicable approaches to support decision-making, especially for risk characterization (initially with regard to water and coastal resources);
- Establishment of a broad network of regionally scoped, long-term efforts to support risk management and decision support at scales of relevance to local to regional to decision making; and;
- Promotion of the transfer of knowledge, tools, and products across climate service development efforts (within NOAA, across the federal government, nationally, and internationally).
CASD research activities support several societal challenges articulated in the context of the climate adaptation and mitigation objective of the NOAA Next Generation Strategic Plan (NGSP), which addresses: i) water resources; ii) coastal resilience; iii) marine ecosystems; and iv) weather and extreme events. The division also funds US- and internationally-focused projects to develop capacity and facilitate learning about the challenges and solutions associated with understanding and meeting the climate-related needs of decision makers.
The Division Director is a member of the senior leadership team within the Climate Program Office, whose responsibility it is to ensure that day-to-day management of activities achieves NOAA’s climate goals and objectives. The Division Director leads a team of ten professionals, providing coordination and oversight for the following programs:
- Coastal and Ocean Climate Applications (COCA) – supports interdisciplinary applications research on the impacts of climate variability and change on coastal communities and coastal and marine ecosystems to inform decision making;
- International Research and Applications Project (IRAP) – supports activities to link climate research and assessments to practical risk management, development and adaptation challenges in key regions throughout the world;
- National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) – provides dynamic and easily accessible drought information for the Nation. NIDIS supports drought research focusing on risk assessment, forecasting, management, and development of decision-support resources. “Coping with Drought,” grants competitions are administered through the RISA and SARP programs;
- Regional Integrated Science and Assessments (RISA) – supports 11 research teams across the US that conduct innovative, interdisciplinary, user-inspired, and regionally relevant research in order to inform resource management, planning, and public policy; and
- Sectoral Applications Research Program (SARP) – funds research grants and engagement activities to address the needs of a specific stakeholder or set of stakeholder within key socioeconomic sectors (e.g., water resources, agriculture, health, etc.) grappling with pressing climate-related issues.
This position is based in Washington, DC and is open to US citizens. Salary range: $123,758-155,000. Highly-motivated individuals with excellent communication skills, extensive knowledge of climate science, and the demonstrated ability to provide strategic management and oversight of an inter-disciplinary portfolio are encouraged to apply through USAjobs.gov: job announcement # OAR-AA-2014-0001 (for Federal Employees) and OAR-AA-2014-0002 (for non-Federal employee applicants) This job announcement is open from January 10–21, 2014.
